Five questions for Clemson's football group streamer into open practice

Fifty-eight days after a Clemson football group fell to contingent inhabitant champion Alabama in a Sugar Bowl; 58 days after another run during another pretension fell short, a Tigers are strictly branch a page to 2018.

Spring use starts Wednesday for a Tigers, who will be perplexing to strech a College Football Playoff for a fourth uninterrupted season. This time final year a storylines were all about who a Tigers were missing, though a story in 2018 is about all of a talent entrance back.

There are still gaps to be filled in place of linebacker Dorian O’Daniel, cornerback Ryan Carter, far-reaching receivers Deon Cain and Ray-Ray McCloud and descent lineman Taylor Hearn, though Clemson opens open use with copiousness of abyss and talent. Here are 5 doubt a Tigers wish to answer between Wednesday and a annual open diversion on Apr 14.

1. Who will get a infancy of snaps during quarterback?

This is a apparent doubt for Clemson fans, though it also has an apparent answer — during slightest for now, according to quarterbacks manager Brandon Streeter.

The starting quarterback is Kelly Bryant.

The rising comparison outperformed Zerrick Cooper and Hunter Johnson in open use a year ago, solidified his reason on a starting pursuit in August, and led Clemson to a No. 1 ranking and behind into a College Football Playoff.

Perhaps no actor in a nation had some-more vigour on him than Bryant. In his initial year as a starter, Bryant was replacing Deshaun Watson, who led a Tigers to a inhabitant championship a year before.

But a college football universe wants to know where phenom quarterback partisan Trevor Lawrence fits into a brew this spring. Lawrence will get copiousness of reps, as will Johnson and rising redshirt sophomore Chase Brice, according to Streeter.

Lawrence’s transition onto campus has been a well-spoken one and he comes to Clemson some-more physically grown — during 6-6, 209 pounds — than many of his predecessors. Watson was 180 pounds when he arrived during Clemson.

What Clemson coaches adore about a abyss during quarterback is that it will move out a best in any competitor, utterly Bryant.

“(Kelly) is apparently going to get a reps a initial day, though all 4 of those guys, they’re going to get a lot of reps this spring,” Streeter said. “I can’t contend they’re going to be ideally equal, though it’s going to be flattering tighten to being equal.”

2. With Ray-Ray McCloud and Deon Cain gone, who stairs adult during a receiver position?

Jeff Scott will have a margin day with this one. The Clemson co-offensive coordinator and far-reaching receivers manager has so many abyss in his far-reaching receivers room already and some-more is on a approach this summer when Justyn Ross arrives on campus.

Ross is a best actor in a state of Alabama, nonetheless chose Clemson. For now, Hunter Renfrow is a close for a starting mark out of a slot, though McCloud and Cain’s jobs are adult for grabs. Rising sophomore Tee Higgins seems to fit a check to fill Cain’s spot, as his athleticism and earthy makeup are identical to those of Cain and his predecessor, Mike Williams. Like Williams and Cain, Higgins is prolonged during 6-4 and has a straight burst that consistently impresses Dabo Swinney.

But Higgins was not directly behind Cain on a 2017 abyss chart. That respect went to Diondre Overton, who is 6-5 and had 14 catches for 178 yards in 2017. He will be a junior, definition he is copiousness informed with Clemson’s system. In terms of replacing McCloud, demeanour for rising sophomore Amari Rodgers and rising youth Cornell Powell. As a freshman, Rodgers picked adult Clemon’s complement fast and hexed a infancy few freshmen had. Powell had 8 catches for 57 yards and a touchdown in 2017. The Tigers will all have all sorts of opportunities to brew and compare as they see fit.

3. Is kicker Greg Huegel healthy?

Clemson was dealt a sip of set-back when Huegel, a starting kicker, tore his ACL in a Sep use and was sidelined for a rest of a season. In his place, rising redshirt comparison Alex Spence stepped adult though struggled with certainty before anticipating his approach down a stretch.

If healthy, Huegel will roughly positively resume his normal purpose as a starter in his comparison year, carrying morphed from a walk-on to an All-ACC kicker over a years. Freshman kicker BT Potter will join a ranks in a summer and is a star partisan who is a No. 7 kicker in a country.

ACL tears typically take 6 to 9 months to heal. Huegel’s came toward a finish of September, so there is a possibility he could still need a small some-more time.

4. Will Clemson’s offense go with using backs by cabinet or with a featured back?

Last year, beginner using behind Travis Etienne did not play a snap opposite Auburn since coaches were not utterly prepared to put him into that environment. That will not occur again this year. Etienne is a flashiest, many dangerous curtain a Tigers have in terms of violation off for prolonged plays.

Tavien Feaster, a rising junior, started a infancy of a games a deteriorate ago after he edged out C.J. Fuller for a mark mid by a season. Fuller has motionless to transfer, withdrawal Clemson with Etienne, Feaster and Adam Choice. The Tigers also supplement incoming beginner Lyn-J Dixon into a mix.

So co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott contingency confirm if he’ll stagger his backs in and out of games, or if there will be a featured behind who will get many of a snaps. Given a abyss and opposite skillsets, it seems really probable he could take a cabinet track again, utterly given that a best pass guardian (Fuller) is now gone.

5. Which members of a defensive line redshirt?

It was radically a foregone end that Clemson defensive linemen Christian Wilkins, Austin Bryant and Clelin Ferrell would be out a doorway after 2017, streamer for a NFL. But all 3 got reduce grades than they would have favourite from breeze experts and all 3 were told they substantially would not be first-round picks.

All 3 wish to be first-round breeze picks and they all wish another inhabitant championship, so a Tigers’ are plain on a defensive front.

The 3 of them, along with rising youth Dexter Lawrence, give Clemson 100 percent of a defensive line back. Swinney told ESPN on Monday that Lawrence will be singular in use with a feet injury, that could make approach for some of a incoming tackles to spin some heads. It seems expected that star defensive ends Xavier Thomas and K.J. Henry could play right away. But what a Tigers confirm to do with a rest of a incoming linemen will be something they start to consider this open and into a summer.